Day 3615

A loud crash woke me up last night. Even though I was half asleep, I knew I'd heard this noise before. Either a tree had fallen in the back yard or a drunk driver had driven through our front yard. I looked out the window and all the remaining trees were still standing. As I returned to bed I heard a fire truck approach and stop a few hundred yards past our house. Yep. It was a drunk driver again. This morning I confirmed what I already knew. A car had left the road at high speed, traveled through our neighbor's yard, sailed over our driveway, knocked a big divot out of our yard, bounced into our other neighbor's yard, and the returned to the street where it probably landed on its roof. Believe it or not, this has happened at least six times since we've lived here.

The city has three large strategically placed signs indicating that the road turns to the left but it doesn't seem to make any difference. An hour after the bars close, some people just keep driving straight. These accidents always happen between 2:30 and 3 AM. Luckily our house has escaped damage but the neighbors haven't been so lucky. Once, one of these cars took out the neighbor's fence. Another car knocked over a large Crepe Myrtle tree in the other neighbor's yard. Years ago, a car actually hit this neighbor's house. I wish there was a way to just eliminate drunks and substance abusers. The world would be a better place.

Amazingly, I managed to get everything done today. I returned some of the items we used at the adoption event yesterday to the storage warehouse, filled the car with gas, and did all my grocery shopping with time to spare. There was still plenty of time to go to the gym. After my workout, I decided that it was warm enough to go up on the roof and make a few more repairs.

The big bucket of liquid silicon is finally light enough that I could lift the entire the entire thing to the roof. This made the job a little easier and a lot less messy. There is no need to transfer the silicon to a smaller bucket anymore. I swept a thick blanket of pecan leaves off the roof before I started my repairs and then applied about a gallon of the material. We'll see if this helps. I can't see any bad spots, but that doesn't mean that there aren't any.

The sun was already low in the sky before I started my walk. I wondered if I'd be able to make it home before sunset. I wish we hadn't bothered with the time change. I don't really care when the sun comes up in the morning but I do enjoy a little daylight in the afternoon. I had to cut my walk a little short today because I didn't feel like walking in the dark.

I hate the thought of fixing the front yard again. I can fill the big hole with dirt and put in some new St. Augustine sod, but it will just get destroyed again. It might be next month or it might be five years from now, but this won't be the last time that someone driving home after the bars close fails to notice  that the road is no longer straight.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2839

For the sixth time since we moved here, a car ploughed through our front yard at a high rate of speed, knocked over several small trees in our neighbor's yard, and eventually came to rest about 100 yards away in an adjacent side street after knocking over a stop sign. It's amazing that these accidents happen again and again. They either occur around 2 AM, right after the bars close, or early in the morning when tired shift workers are headed home from their job.

I heard the crash this morning when I was cleaning Dash's paws in the back yard after we returned from our morning walk. By the time I went out front to see what had happened, I could already hear the sirens of first responders arriving. There must have been injuries, because an ambulance and fire truck were on the scene in minutes. The busy street we live on makes a slight turn just before our house. If you're not paying attention, I would imagine that it would be easy to just keep going straight and end up on our front yard. Maybe that's not what's going on, but it's all I can think of. At any rate, the errant car tore up the yard again and I will have to go buy some sod to replace the grass that is no longer there.

Dash was walking so slowly this morning that our walk took over an hour and a half. Dash would walk about twenty feet and then stop and smell things for the longest time. I couldn't figure out if he was enjoying himself, or having trouble walking with his new knee brace. He seemed to be enjoying himself, so we just kept walking.

Like everyone else, I was shocked to hear about the shooting in Las Vegas. I was kind of shocked to hear about Tom Petty too. I used to spend a lot of time in Las Vegas and always considered the city very safe. One by one, all my favorite places are becoming war zones. Barcelona is in turmoil and wants to succeed from Spain. Paris has been plagued by terrorist attacks. I wouldn't dare visit Turkey again. And now Las Vegas has joined the fray. I guess it's not surprising that I mostly just stay home these days.

Dash still seems to be eating after we discontinued the Cerenia yesterday. Just to be safe, I went and picked up some more Cerenia tablets at the vet. I'd rather not have him taking the anti-nausea medication, but it is essential that he keeps eating. After I picked up Dash's pills, I renewed one of my own prescriptions at my doctor's office. There were so many sick people in the lobby that I wished they had a drive through window. The crowded lobby made me seriously consider switching doctors again. The fact that my doctor fired me as his web designer doesn't help matters either. Maybe it's time for a change.

Every night I go to bed hoping that the next day will be calm and peaceful. It certainly wasn't a calm day today, but maybe tomorrow will be better. I can't keep the world from disintegrating, but I'm hoping that I can help Dash get well again. So much is out of my control now, but I can still help a sick dog.

Bailey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day